


Christmas in Hell's Kitchen

by cherryflesh



Category: Daredevil (TV)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Cuddling & Snuggling, Domestic Fluff, Kissing, M/M, Puppies, Seriously google cocker spaniel puppies I double dare you not to melt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-23
Updated: 2016-12-23
Packaged: 2018-09-11 09:15:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8973790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherryflesh/pseuds/cherryflesh
Summary: Matt is trying to find a nice Christmas gift for Frank to get him into the holiday spirit. Eventually, he stumbles over something unexpected...





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Amaria_Anna_D](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amaria_Anna_D/gifts).



A grudging truce became a friendship of sorts, simple in its unspoken intimacy. Both of them had seen the other at their weakest and when trying to be noble. Living together began as a necessity, for a specific mission. It dragged on because it was simply that much more practical.

It was gradual, but when the first snow started to fall Frank had most of his stuff at Matt’s place. It would take a few days still before both of them had realized they were living together. Frank realized it as he was making lasagna and held out a spoon for Matt to taste the sauce.

Warm, unseeing eyes blinked several times as Matt gave the spoon a slow lick, letting the sauce roll around his tongue before he gave Frank his boyish smile.

”Needs more salt”, he had remarked.

”You always add salt”, Frank had groused, still reeling from the realization. ”You eat too much salt.”

He quickly turned, unsettled by how comfortable he felt with it.

Matt, on the other hand, didn’t quite realize it until he found himself shopping for a second bed, because he wanted his couch back, and found himself wondering if his bed was big enough for two people. Imagining him and Frank sharing a bed branched out in his mind until he had to lie down. Within minutes, footsteps stopped next to the bed.

”See anything you like, sir?”

Matt quickly got up, excused himself and left the store. He didn’t buy a second bed. Instead, he tentatively asked Frank a few days later if he, y’know, thought the couch was uncomfortable he could, y’know, sleep on the bed. ’Cause the bed’s spacey. Y’know. Frank had gruffly insisted the couch was fine.

Until about a week later around midnight when Matt awoke by a sudden weight shift in the bed.

”That better be you, Frank”, he grumbled, knowing full well it was. Frank had a distinct smell of leather and gunpowder that didn’t seem to wash off.

”Relax, Red. It’s me”, Frank replied shortly, settling in on the left side of the bed.

A minute of silence ticked by.

”See? It’s not weird”, Matt said faintly when he couldn’t stand the silence anymore.

The weight shifted again, and suddenly Matt found that Frank was leaning above him, supporting himself on one fist on either side of his shoulders. None of them said anything and Matt tried a nervous grin.

” _So_ not weird, rig-”

”Fuck’s sake, Red”, Frank growled and descended on him, lips meeting in a short, hard kiss that was immediately followed by a softer one, a slow a deliberate exploration that left both of them breathless.

 

* * *

 

 

_December 24_

As much as his boyfriend apparently wasn’t into Christmas, Matt was. And he was determined to make it a nice one. At the very least get Frank a gift that would make him happy.

And so far he had come up short.

A gun? _Too violent._ Also, Frank probably had more guns than any other person he knew.

A framed picture of them? _Too sentimental._ They hadn’t been dating for more than a few weeks. The word ’dating’ made him cringe anyway; whatever they were doing, it wasn’t really dating.

A sweater? Any kind of clothes? _Too… impersonal._

And so it went on, for most of December. So here he was, taking a walk on Christmas eve, while Frank was making dinner. He had stubbornly refused a traditional Christmas dinner and the food negotiations had been hard. 

> ”Christmas dinner! Because it’s Christmas!”
> 
> ”Let’s order Chinese. Because it starts with the same two fucking letters.”
> 
> ”How about turkey?” 
> 
> ”Tacos.”
> 
> ”..steak..?”
> 
> ”..Fine.”

The air was cold and crisp, and large snow flakes stuck to his eye lashes before melting on his skin. Everything was so quiet. Peaceful. Matt debated going to church, perhaps even asking Frank to join him, but decided against it. _Babysteps._

Out of nowhere the wind carried a small sound, a tender whine of distress. At first Matt thought he had imagined it, then he slowly turned, listening carefully. The snow muted all sounds, but when he made the effort he could clearly hear it. Keeping all senses open and alert, he moved towards the sound, which led him into an alley. To his knowledge, nothing good ever happened in an alley.

The way the wind moved, the way the snow fell… it told him that there was a box just a few feet away. Something whimpered pitifully and he knelt beside it, slowly reaching his hand inside. Apart from the snow, his fingertips touched a small, warm body.

”Oh dear God…” He jerked his hand away first, but the whining grew louder and he quickly lowered it into the box again. Immediately a small, soft head butted against it. Very, very gently, as gently as he could, he used both hands to touch, to map out the outline of the poor creature in the box. Felt around if there was more of them in there.

Then he just as gently scooped the puppy up and held it close to his chest.

”Hey you… it’s okay…” he said softly and the puppy continued to make noises, a little more animated than before. He opened his coat and put it there, letting the warmth envelop it. Not sure if he should take it to the vet, or even if the vet was open at this hour, he decided to take it home. ”It’s gonna be okay, little guy… there’s a big dog at home but he’s really really nice and won’t bite you or anything…”

At least he hoped that Max wouldn’t. All the way home he continued to talk in the same soft voice, one hand cradling the puppy inside the coat. Just so that it would know that somebody was there. What if it had been too cold for too long? What if it was dying? _Well_ , he thought, _at least it gets to spend its last minutes in a warm place with people who care…_  
  


* * *

  
Dinner was just about ready, so when the door opened Frank grinned. 

”You _do_ have a sixth sense…”

Then Max, who was sprawled on the kitchen floor for the last hour, never once giving up hope that Frank would eventually drop something or take pity on him, scrambled to his feet and set off towards the door.

”Max? What is it, boy?”

He saw Matt sink to his knees and for a heart-stopping moment he thought he was hurt. Then a small head peaked out from his winter coat, right in the middle of his chest. Max went ballistic, making odd noises somewhere between huffing, growling and whining.

”What the _fuck_ is that?” Frank demanded, slowly walking closer while Matt unbuttoned his coat.

”Careful, Max… careful! He’s very small”, Matt said.

Max huffed and sank back on his haunches, then leaned forward and snuffled the little thing poking its head out. It whined loudly at the attention and Max huffed again, followed by a grunt. Clearly some kind of dog communication was taking place, so Matt raised his face to Frank.

”I found him in the snow, half frozen.” The words ’can we keep him’ hung in the air. Frank didn’t know what to say, he felt stunned. A goddam puppy.

”Give him to me, I’ll take a look”, he finally said and accepted the handful. He gently cradled the puppy, who looked up at him with a sad, forlorn expression that he could really just see in one breed. His fur was silky smooth and caramel colored.

Matt seemed to wait for his verdict, so he cleared his throat.

”I think it's a cocker spaniel, maybe six or seven weeks old. And, uh… it’s a ’she’.”

Matt reached out to pet her and she licked his hand.

”Hey girl”, he said softly, then to Frank: ”Will she be alright?”

”Yeah”, Frank replied softly. ”Yeah, she’ll be fine.”

The puppy sniffed the hands that were holding her and promptly started to gnaw on Frank’s.

”You smell like food! I think you’re her favorite person in the whole world right now”, Matt grinned and Frank huffed a laugh at that.  
  


* * *

  
After the dinner was done and eaten they spent the night researching cocker spaniels, and decided to find a vet the next day to look her over. Get her some chew toys, because Max seemed to have resolved to tolerate everything from his new friend, and was now crushed that his tail had become her favorite thing to gnaw on. And every time he wagged it he knocked her over.

Frank had voiced his opinion that people who left puppies in the snow should be severely beaten, and for once he and Matt were in perfect agreement. 

Eventually, they both ended up in bed, puppy rummaging around between them. Max joined them too despite Matt’s protests, because how unfair would it be if he didn’t get to?

”We’re keeping her, right?” Matt ventured at last, mentally keeping his fingers crossed.

”We shouldn’t. This ain’t the best home for her…” Frank trailed off. ”But yeah, we’re keeping her. She’ll be fine. She’s a badass.”

She was currently trying to poke her head in Max’s mouth to see if there was food anywhere. Max gagged, but tolerated it with the patience of a saint.

”So what do we name her?” Matt said, inching closer to settle against Frank’s chest. Frank automatically pulled him closer, brushing his lips against the top of his head.

”Karen? It’ll be the only Karen who actually listens to us”, Frank said and they both laughed at that.

”Karen, sit”, Matt tried, and they laughed harder. ”Nah, she’d never have it.”

”Princess?” Frank suggested. ”Or Queen?”

”What queen, though?” Matt looked thoughtful. ”Elizabeth?”

”Queen Elizabeth? That’s some really fancy shit.”

”It’ll be Ellie for short.”

”Ellie? I like it”, Frank conceded. ”Hey Ellie!”

Ellie perked up and tumbled over across the sheets, tiny tail wagging furiously.

”Yup, she’s on board.” He grinned as she clumsily climbed his chest to get to his face, where she proceeded to lick his nose and chin.

Matt smiled, listening to something as unusual as Frank laughing. He found that he absolutely loved that sound.

_Merry Christmas to all of us._

**Author's Note:**

> Happy holidays, Amaria! I hope you enjoyed this little piece of adorableness and that you are enjoying a wonderful season filled with love and joy! <3
> 
> Lots and lots of love,  
> C


End file.
